


The Wind in the Dark

by LizBee



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: F/M, Friends With Benefits, failing at being friends with benefits, straight-up vanilla het sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-02
Updated: 2015-01-02
Packaged: 2018-03-04 20:26:07
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3087965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LizBee/pseuds/LizBee
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Pema is gone, and Tenzin is alone. It's too soon. Lin should have stayed away.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. One

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted as a WiP on FF.net (it's now complete!) with the following notes:
> 
> So I'm doing NaNo for the first time since, oh, 2003. And because that plus my job plus the book I'm editing plus the convention I'm chairing aren't enough, I'm also writing fic as a procrastination tool. Specifically this fic, which is kind of a challenge for me, because it's been a really long time since I wrote something that was just about people kissing a lot and being confused by their feelings.
> 
> Anyway, NaNo writing is kind of solitary, so I'm posting this as a WiP because I need some kind of feedback or contact about my writing. (That is not to say people should feel any pressure to leave reviews or else I'll sulk.) I have the draft up to a good conclusion point now, so at some point soon it will be finished. And at a later point, it will be revised to have the roughness smoothed out. And stuff. It's a bit first drafty, I'm sorry, but FFN is a nice, low pressure environment for posting that sort of thing. Except for the ratings bit, because this one's gonna have a higher rating at some point. Oh well.

Eight months and three weeks after Pema died, the president of the United Republic visited Air Temple Island. 

Lin had argued against it from the very first suggestion, but she was overruled -- but she was expected, nevertheless, to accompany President Thuy. Fifty-six years old, with a forty-year career behind her, and she was a glorified bodyguard. 

So she leaned against the wall, arms crossed, deliberately insubordinate as she watched Tenzin cut the president off mid-sentence.

"No," he said. "I'm not uprooting my family for months, to mediate a pointless argument about who owns which rocks."

"The natural resources," the president began.

"Are of no interest to me." He put the briefing notes down and crossed his arms. Beside him, Jinora picked the folder up and began to leaf through it. "Anyone can mediate this. Judge Katal of the Northern Water Tribe is a fair man. Let him spend six months in the Fire Nation."

Thuy said, "We thought that an Air Nomad -- particularly one with your experience -- you can't spend the rest of your life on Air Temple Island."

Lin froze. Jinora's eyes widened. 

Tenzin swallowed and said, "As a former United Republic councilman, do you really expect me to be impartial?"

"I'll go," said Jinora. 

"What?" said Tenzin, as the president said, "You?"

"Why not?" Jinora closed the folder. "You can't say I'm too young -- I'm older than Prince Zuko was when he became Fire Lord."

"By months," Tenzin muttered.

"And this is interesting. If," Jinora scowled up at the president, "seriously biased in favor of the United Republic." She looked at her father. "I can go, can't I? I was going to do some work in the Western Air Temple library -- it's just a short flight from the Fire Nation."

"We'll talk about it," said Tenzin repressively. Jinora's shoulders slumped a little, but Tenzin's attention had returned to Thuy, attempting a polite smile. "You'll stay for dinner, Madame President? My sister's preparing fresh sea prunes."

The president blanched and made her excuses.

"I'll stay," said Lin. She caught Tenzin's eye, and he finally smiled.

They escorted the president back to the dock and watched the ferry set out for the mainland.

"That was cruel," said Lin. "Sea prunes? What's really on the menu?"

"Nothing, if I don't start cooking. Kya's on Kyoshi Island for the week." He touched Lin's arm. "It's good to see you, Lin."

"You, too." She leaned against the dock's railings, enjoying the breeze. The sun was setting in a blaze of orange and purple, and the air was full of the scent of flowers. Spring was a magical time on Air Temple Island. "Crass as she is, Thuy's right about one thing. We've missed you."

"'We'?"

Lin shrugged. "The Air Nation does its job well, but it needs its leader."

"I know. I just … can't bring myself to leave." He shrugged helplessly. "If I leave Republic City … when I come back, she'll still be gone."

It wasn't even an echo of jealousy that welled up in Lin, but the memory of it. An old wound she had nurtured long after it scarred over. She pushed it aside and said, "Would you like to talk about it?" 

"I miss her. I miss the way she laughed at me when I took myself too seriously. The way she lost her temper. I miss hearing her out-talk Ikki." Tenzin folded his arms tightly across his chest, repelling any offer of sympathy. "If she had gotten fed up and left me, I'd miss her, but at least she'd be alive. Happy." 

He had been at the North Pole when Pema collapsed, right into Lin's arms on a cold winter's day. She was representing the Air Nation at President Thuy's inauguration, and Lin had been struck by how frail she seemed. She was going to ask about it later. Then Pema passed out, and there was no need to ask, because the healers found it right away. A growth in her breast, already spread throughout her body, disturbing her chi.

Lin sent a telegram. _Come home. She needs you._ And she had hovered, awkwardly, on the family's periphery until the end, and afterwards. But Tenzin had barely mentioned Pema, until now. 

"I miss being able to roll over in bed and find her there. It's … empty. Cold. I miss her softness in bed." With a rueful smile, he admitted, "When I can't sleep, I take my glider and fly over the city until I'm exhausted. It's the only time I leave Air Temple Island." 

Lin shook her head.

"Are you going to make a joke about Air Nomads who can't stand to leave home?"

"Sounds like your siblings got there first." She hesitated. "I have trouble sleeping sometimes. I'll leave a light on. If you want to talk."

"Thank you." He took her hand and squeezed it. "It's … lonely at night."

Without meaning to, Lin said, "You miss the sex."

She froze, wondering if she'd gone too far, but his ears were turning red, and she burst out laughing.

"Lin!"

"We were together for twenty years. You have four children. We used to fuck all afternoon, and now you're blushing because--"

He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her.

Lin closed her eyes and kissed him back.

Sex had been joyless by the end, angry at best, mechanical the rest of the time. They used to fight for the pleasure of making up, but the arguments started following them into the bedroom. Worst of all were the times they realised they were breaking apart, and tried frantically to fix it, trying to summon tenderness in place of disdain. And yet she'd hated Pema for taking the one person she had left, and worse, for making him happy.

This kiss--

Tenzin's hands in her hair, on her neck, the parts of her body not hidden by armour. His lips on hers, his tongue touching her teeth. His beard was rough against her skin, but it was familiar, it was all familiar. And he was so gentle, she was reminded of their very first kiss, except this time there was no hesitation. She was flooded with memory and desire, and she wanted nothing more than to let go and drown in it.

She pushed him away and stepped back.

"I'm sorry," Tenzin said. "I don't know what came over me." 

"I should go." 

"Yes," he said. "It's -- I can't -- it's too soon."

She felt him watching her as she walked away, returning to the dock to wait for the last ferry back to the city. She didn't look back.

But she could still taste his kiss hours later, when she was home with a package of greasy dumplings and an unopened bottle of baiju. She ate in her courtyard, sitting on the ground, her feet bare. 

She left a light on.


	2. Two

A week passed with no word from Tenzin, and Lin began to feel ridiculous for even entertaining the possibility. Ridiculous and angry, because she had worked so hard to exorcise that old attraction, and now it had returned, and she was far too old to play this game again.

She distracted herself with work, abandoning paperwork and politics to work cases. One job brought her to the door of a chemistry lecturer at the University of Republic City. He was charming and easy on the eye, and she thought about taking him to bed. But he wasn't what she wanted.

She was still thinking about that the next day, attempting to review reports and instead staring blankly at her desk, when her phone rang.

"Chief?" Her secretary sounded uncharacteristically surprised. "Master Jinora is here to see you." 

"I hope I'm not interrupting," said Jinora. 

"Nothing important. What's wrong?"

"Nothing," said Jinora quickly. "Only, I'm leaving tomorrow morning, and there's a farewell party tonight, and I'd really like it if you could be there." 

"Of course," said Lin, watching as Jinora sat down. "Was that … all?"

"You'll look after Dad, won't you? While I'm away?"

Jinora's expression was pleading. This, Lin guessed, was the real reason for her visit, when the invitation could as easily have been issued by telephone. 

"He's a grown man," said Lin carefully. 

"I know, but -- he misses Mom _so much_. And he's a great dad, he always has been, but he really needs a friend. Someone to look out for him." Jinora smiled weakly. "He's probably saying the same thing about me." 

Lin said, "I'm not great at the feelings stuff." 

"Yeah, but you know him. He trusts you." 

"I'll talk to him," Lin promised. "That's it." 

Jinora smiled. "Thank you."

Despite her promise, she caught only glimpses of Tenzin through the evening, in conversation with his children or the Air Acolytes. She caught his eye once, but he looked away, blushing. She settled for leaning against a wall, glowering at partygoers.

The party broke up early, Jinora escaping the president's blandishments by citing her early start the next day. A light drizzle drove the last people away, and that was when Tenzin appeared at Lin's side and said, "Can we talk?"

He led her down to the meditation pavilion, using airbending to keep the rain away. When they were under cover, he said, "Lin, I owe you an apology."

And despite all her recent frustration, she found herself laughing.

"For kissing me? Or for stopping?"

"For -- it was disrespectful to expect you to want -- to even suggest that you could replace--"

"Ohhhh." Lin's amusement dimmed. "I thought you wanted me for sex. I didn't realise you needed a Pema-shaped doll--"

"I don't want you to take Pema's place," Tenzin snapped. "I just wanted--"

"Me," Lin finished.

He looked away.

"So we're back where we started from." Lin moved past him to lean back against the railing. "Here's some news for you, Tenzin, it's possible to sleep with someone without spending the rest of your lives together. Some people even prefer it that way."

"Like you?"

"Well. After you left … I never want to be that dependent on anyone again. Not even you." 

"You don't get lonely?"

She shrugged. "I have my work, a few friends. Lovers when I want them. I like my space."

She turned to look out over the ocean. The wind blew the rain into her face, but it was pleasant. After a moment, Tenzin joined her, resting his hands beside hers on the railing. Their fingers barely touched, but it felt like electricity. 

"Lin." 

She closed her eyes and tilted her head back to meet his kiss. He closed one hand over hers, the other moving to her lip, sliding around her waist and drawing her against him. But when she opened his shirt and ran her hand over his collarbone, she felt him hesitate.

She stepped back.

"You need to make up your mind," she said. "You know where I live."

She walked out into the rain. 

The drizzle had become a downpour by the time the streetcar reached her stop, but she walked the last block slowly, wondering what she'd find at home.

The answer was, nothing but an empty house. 

Torn between amusement and irritation, Lin shed her armour and bra. Barefoot, in trousers and tank top, she stepped out into the courtyard, into the rain. 

There was a rush of air, a whisper of a glider, and Tenzin landed. He gave her a sheepish look, water dripping from his beard and robes.

"If you're here to apologise again," Lin said, "you can turn around and leave right now." 

He took two steps forward and kissed her, tangling his fingers in her wet hair. 

"I won't be your girlfriend," Lin whispered between kisses. "I won't hang out with your kids. I won't dress up and hang off your arm at parties." 

"I don't want that." He was pulling her tank top off. She grabbed it from his hand and threw it away, not caring where it landed, concerned only with the rain and his hands on her bare skin. "I just want you."


	3. Three

Water trickled down her back and dripped from her hair. The rain was cold and there was a chill in the breeze, but she didn't feel the cold. Tenzin was kissing her with increasing urgency, pausing only to undo his cloak and pull his shirt over his head. 

They took a few steps towards the door, stumbling a little, but they barely reached the porch before Lin summoned a rock bench and pushed Tenzin down on it, kneeling either side of his legs so he could kiss her breasts and run his mouth down her belly. 

"Hey," she snapped as he stopped, but he ignored her, getting to his feet and using airbending to lift her. "No fair," she said, wrapping her legs around his waist.

"It's too cold to sit on a rock in the rain." 

He summoned a breeze to open the door, but only made it a few steps inside, pushing her up against the wall and kissing her again. Lin was cushioned by air with stone at her back, and Tenzin's erection pressing against her. She moaned.

"See?" Tenzin shifted, taking some of her weight on his knee -- she provided a step for him -- and running his hand over her breast, down her stomach, into her pants. "Isn't it better when it's dry and warm?" 

She closed her eyes and conceded defeat.

"Bedroom," she said. Then, remembering how long it had been, she added, "I use the big one, now." 

"Pity. I have fond memories of that narrow little bed you used to sleep in." 

"Next time." She had taken the lead, undoing his trousers as they walked, shedding her own. 

In her room, she pushed him down on the bed and straddled him, but he rolled over, pushing her onto her back and parting her legs. 

"I've missed you," he said, stroking her. "I can't pretend I never wished--"

"Greedy," she managed to say. "You'd have had both of us if we'd been willing to share." 

He put his mouth between her legs, slipping his fingers inside her, building a rhythm until she was almost on the edge. Then he stopped, and his beard tickled her inner thigh as he kissed it.

"Unfair," Lin managed to say. 

"Life is--" He broke off as she caught him by the shoulders and climbed on top of him, letting him enter her. "Lin. Lin." Tenzin closed his eyes and whispered her name as she moved against him. He brought her hands to his lips, kissing each finger individually, pulling her closer until their mouths touched. 

Then he flipped her onto her back and set a harder rhythm, pushing her down into the mattress, kissing her deeply as he fucked her. 

He came with a stifled moan, and the wind made the curtains tremble. He fell limp into Lin's arms. She cupped his face.

"Better?" she asked.

He kissed her in answer, then moved down, kissing her shoulder and collarbone, ribs and belly. Finally he put his mouth between her legs and licked her clit properly. Lin wanted to say, "Finally," but she was beyond words. Her breath was coming in little pants, her heart was pounding, and she was _so close_ \-- but every time she was about to come, he slowed down, tightening his grip on her hips and changing the pattern. 

Her instinct was to pull his hair to make him obey -- but that was something she had learned after he left her. She settled for clutching at the bed sheets and arching her back, her breath coming faster and faster and--

Oh.

Yes.

Afterwards, he lay on her bed, sprawled naked over the covers, watching Lin as she got up to retrieve the trail of clothes they had left behind them. Her tank top and his cloak and shirt were still in the courtyard, and by the time she had found the rain-soaked, dirty garments, she was wet all over again. 

Naked and dripping, she found a towel. Tenzin was sitting up when she got back, and he took the towel out of her hands and dried her himself, pausing now and then to kiss her.

"I can't stay the night," he said when they were done, and she was climbing under the blankets. 

"I know." She reached for him. "Stay a little while." 

She put her head on his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around her. She couldn't remember the last time a lover had lingered to hold her. She couldn't remember the last time she had wanted one to. She ran her fingers through his beard and closed her eyes. 

She half woke when he left, just enough to sense his absence and roll over into the still-warm space he had occupied. 

It was a problem, she thought, still drowsy, that he still had the power to make her so happy -- that making love to Tenzin felt like coming home. She didn't like to give anyone that much power, least of all the man who had once betrayed her. But it was, apparently, beyond her control.

She went back to sleep.

The sun was shining when she woke up. Tenzin had left a note on her kitchen table, written in his neat, precise characters. _Thank you._

Lin smiled. She had an insane urge to keep the note safe, keep it forever. _None of that_ , she told herself, and threw it away. 

But she found herself smiling at odd moments throughout the day.


	4. Four

She was not, she told herself sternly, _in love_. She was far too old for that nonsense, and the time when she and Tenzin could spend spend a whole day cuddling and talking were almost two decades past. They didn't even have days -- she had her job, he had his family, and the Air Nation over which he was slowly reasserting his authority. 

They snatched hours here and there, usually late at night, when his family was asleep. Intense encounters, but without the bleak desperation that had marked their last years together. It felt like an affair, and as much as she resented their limited time together, she also knew the urgency was part of the appeal. 

Lin wasn't in love, but she was prepared to admit she was happy. Tenzin knew how to please her -- sex was something they had figured out together -- and if he was sometimes distant, well, he had stopped trying to compete with her job; she could refrain from competing with Pema.

Until one afternoon, when they were entwined together in the little bed she had used a teen, still damp from the warmth of the early summer. Lin was almost asleep, while Tenzin created tiny whirlwinds to evaporate the beads of sweat on her bare chest.

Tenzin said, "I forgot how quiet you are in bed."

She was too sleepy to make sense of it at first. Then she realised what he meant.

"Compared to who?" she demanded. "Pema?" 

She sat up, reaching for her discarded shirt.

"I just meant--"

"That you're comparing us." She fumbled with the ties on her shirt. "I thought I made it clear that I wasn't going to play that game."

"Lin, I--"

She silenced him with a glare. He looked down.

She crossed her arms. A million cutting remarks crowded her mind. She could send him away right now, and he would know forever that he was in the wrong, that he had pushed her away with his own stupidity. He'd be lonely and guilty, and she'd be --

alone.

The rage she had built for him turned inward. Stupid -- this was why she was alone -- this was the same behaviour that had kept her from her family for decades -- and him -- she was never going to learn, she was always going to be --

She turned on her heel and walked out.

Tenzin found her in the living room a few minutes later, sitting on the couch with her head in her hands. 

"I'm sorry," he said. 

Lin nodded not trusting herself to speak. She let Tenzin take her hand, and made room for him beside her.

"I fucked up," she said. "Again." 

"No, I think that was me." 

"No." She couldn't even look at him. "I thought going to bed with you would be easy. I thought I was teaching you how to keep a distance." She pulled her hand out of his. "I love you."

And she hadn't even realised it until now. She was so busy reassuring herself she wasn't _falling in love_ that she hadn't recognised the steady, familiar affection for what it was.

Tenzin said, "Oh." 

She forced herself to look at him. His gaze was distant, his face stricken.

"Like I said. I fucked up." She rested her elbows on her knees, letting her hands hang as she stared at the floor. "I thought I could just go to bed with you. I thought we'd have fun, and you could let go of -- of everything for a while. I didn't realise…" Lin swallowed. "I'm sorry."

Tenzin was silent.

"Say something," she said.

"I'm sorry."

Lin smiled bleakly. "For what?"

He looked away.

"When I'm with you," he said at last, "there are moments -- brief moments -- when I can let Pema go."

"Moments." The word tasted bitter in her mouth. 

"Brief periods of something like happiness. When I forget that she won't see our kids grow up. She won't meet our grandchildren. Then it passes, and I remember, and -- I'm sorry, Lin." He looked at her, tears in his eyes. "I feel like I'm betraying Pema."

"And you hate me for it."

"No!" 

She didn't believe him. 

Lin stood up, pacing the length of her living room. The anger was back, pushing her forward. "I just -- I figured you needed someone. And, yeah, it might as well be me. Maybe I was being selfish." She crossed her arms, wishing for her armour. "You don't need a lover. You need to figure out how to be alone." 

Tenzin stood up, and now he, too, was angry. 

"Now you're just being--"

"When we broke up, I realised I'd organised my whole life around you."

"Don't be ridiculous," said Tenzin. "If I wanted to see you, I practically had to schedule an appointment three months in advance, and then hope you wouldn't get an emergency call before dinner."

"You're exaggerating. You're the one who spent a year travelling around the air temples."

"Yes, and when I got back, I found you were all but sleeping in your armour!"

"Because," said Lin through gritted teeth, "you went away, and took my entire life outside of work with you. Because all of our friends were actually just your friends. And when you left me, I realised just how isolated I was. I never had to make friends, because I always had you."

"Please don't use me as a crutch for your social limitations," said Tenzin. His ears and cheeks had turned red. 

"I figured it out," said Lin. "Eventually. I have friends, I've had plenty of lovers, and I'm very happy with my life. I learned to be alone. But you -- you went from me to Pema, and now she's gone, and look, here I am again." 

She stepped closer to Tenzin. The anger evaporated and she signed, leaning her head against his chest. 

"I don't want to fight," she said. "You should leave." She could feel the warmth of his body. "Before we both say something we regret."

"I should." His hands were on her shoulders. She put her arms around his neck.

"This was a mistake."

"We went much too fast," he agreed. "I don't want to destroy our friendship."

"Again."

Their lips touched. Just for a moment. Then Tenzin pulled away.

"You're right," he said. His hands rested on her hips, one thumb inside the waistband of her shorts. "I should concentrate on my family."

Lin kissed him lightly, reaching down to undo his trousers. "They need you." 

He cupped her jaw, holding her in place as their kisses became deeper, tugging her pants down with his other hand. He moaned as she stroked his erection. 

"This is -- Lin--"

"This is the last time." She pushed him down on the low table with the winged boar design lacquered into the surface. "After this, we're just friends." She dropped to her knees, taking his cock into her mouth. 

"Lin," he said, his voice cracking with pleasure. His hands find their way into her hair. 

And then she thought, _He did this with Pema_ , and she was overcome by a stab of jealousy as fresh as if Pema was still alive. As if this was twenty years ago and she was losing Tenzin for the first time. 

She dug her fingernails into his hips, and Tenzin gasped, pulling her hair. He was close, so close… She let his cock slip out of her mouth and climbed into his lap, meeting his thrust as he entered her. She kissed him deeply, and grazed his lips with her tongue as he came. 

They clung together for a few minutes, exchanging gentle kisses. Then Tenzin shifted, and she had to straighten up and lower herself to the floor. 

"Are we too old to have sex on your grandparents' furniture?" Tenzin wondered.

"It was always uncomfortable. Just used to take us longer to notice, that's all." Lin stretched, realising she was still wearing her shirt, now stained with sweat, and nothing else. Her hair was in her face, her cheeks felt flushed, and there was an insistent throb between her legs. "I must look ridiculous." 

"It's certainly an interesting position for the second most powerful woman in the city," said Tenzin, sinking to the ground beside her. "But it has a certain appeal." He slid his fingers inside her, leaving the tip of his thumb resting on her clit. "Especially when you make that face." 

She shifted, pressing herself against his hand, stifling a moan as he curled his fingers inside her. 

"Are you still angry?" he asked.

"A little -- no, don't stop. I'm angry. It doesn't mean I hate you -- mmph." She could feel the pressure building. "How can you make me talk about feelings at a time like this? No, no, like that -- like that--" She was on the brink, but he slowed down. "I'll be angrier if you stop."

"This isn't like the angry sex we use to have."

"No." Lin swallowed a moan. "This is new." 

"Maybe we've grown in our years apart." 

"Tenzin, if you don't let me come soon, I swear you'll see just how angry I can be." 

He laughed and ran his free hand over her breasts, summoning a breeze to lift her shirt and caress her nipples. 

"Did you mean it?" he asked, still stroking her, "when you said you loved me?"

"I take it back. Typical airbender. All tease--" 

She inhaled sharply as her orgasm rose, building to a peak. She felt the stone floor crack beneath her as she crested the wave, but she was too far gone to care.

She lay sprawled on her floor while Tenzin washed his hands and retrieved his clothes. She was half-asleep when he returned to her side.

"Are you going?" she asked.

"I feel as if I should put you to bed first." 

"Help me up." 

He pulled her to her feet, and they stood toe to toe, looking at each other. Then Lin slipped her arms around his waist.

"This is it," she said, resting her head on his shoulder. 

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be." She closed her eyes, inhaling his scent. "I'm the one who got emotionally involved." 

"Lin."

"Tenzin?"

"I said certain things when our relationship ended. At the time, I thought they were true." 

She straightened up, pushing him away. 

"Haven't we had enough emotional confessions for one day?"

"I never stopped loving you." 

Lin closed her eyes.

"It was -- uncomfortable, to realise I could love two women at once. I had already made my choice. It was a very complex situation. I felt like loving you meant I was lying to Pema."

She took his hand.

"I was wrong," he said. "I don't regret my marriage, or my children. But I do regret the way we ended things." 

"Me, too." Lin swallowed. "I behaved badly." She attempted a smile. "Look, you know I'm not good at tact. But I meant it when I said you should be alone for a while." She closed her eyes and returned to his embrace. "I'm not saying I like it, mind."

"I don't expect you to wait."

"Good. You never know when someone better might come along." Tenzin's arms were tight around her shoulders. "We can stay friends this time, right?"

"Lin." He kissed her forehead. "I'll always love you." 

She wanted to tell him that she had changed her mind, what he needed was to be with her, but before she could open her mouth, the telephone rang. 

She hesitated.

"You should get that," said Tenzin. "It's probably work." 

She pushed him away at last, reaching for the phone. 

"Beifong."

"Chief! Mako here. We've got a body down at the docks. Young, male, heavily tattooed. Looks like a Triad execution." 

She was distantly aware of Tenzin squeezing her hand and walking away, but work had her attention now.

"I'll be there in thirty minutes," she said, then remembered her current state. "Make it forty-five. Secure the scene and send any newshounds packing. Tell them I'll take questions tonight."

"On it, Chief."

She hung up the phone and realised she was alone. Again. But it felt like the right thing, this time, and maybe it was temporary. _I never stopped loving you._

She went to shower. 

 

end

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I was going to end this with flowers and a wedding and happy airbending stepchildren, but I realised that would be dishonest. And, like, this may not be my best work, but we can't be having _dishonesty_. Or forced happy endings that aren't earned. Apparently. (Probably the happiest ending would be Tenzin going back in time and saying to his younger self, "But have you considered polyamory?")
> 
> Anyway, this felt like a natural point to leave it, and I shall come back in the future for The Bit Where They Get Back Together and The Bit Where Tenzin's Kids Are Like, "What The Fuck, Dad, We're Not Putting Up With A Stepmother Who Thinks We Don't Turn Into People Until We Turn 12." It's a thing.


End file.
